De Beers Says Nigel Simson to Replace Mahiar Borhanjoo

(IDEX Online News) – De Beers says Nigel Simson is to take over from Mahiar Borhanjoo as Senior Vice President of Global Sightholder Sales following Mahiar Borhanjoo’s decision not to relocate to Botswana as part of the transfer of De Beers’ London-based sales activity, to be completed later this year.

Simson brings nearly 30 years of diamond expertise to the role, including four years as Head of Sales in De Beers' South Africa Sightholder Sales. Prior to that, he spent nine years as a Key Account Manager working with Sightholders based in the major international cutting centers.

His most recent role at De Beers was Head of Beneficiation, based in London, where he has been closely involved with Sightholders based in southern African producer countries.

Varda Shine, Executive Vice President of De Beers’ Global Sightholder Sales, said, “This is an important time for De Beers and our Sightholders, and Nigel was the standout candidate for the role. His wealth of experience in diamonds, De Beers and southern Africa make him perfectly prepared to take the business forward in this exciting period.

Borhanjoo will remain with the Diamond Trading Company in the coming months and will undertake a detailed handover process with Simson.

The DTC is due to complete the transfer of its operations to Gaborone in September/October, with the first Sight to be carried out in November.